Organic wine Priorat, organic wines Spain

Our organic wines from the Priorat thrive in these sometimes extremely steep vineyards that are seemingly very close to heaven. The barren slate soils, as well as the smallest harvest quantities, are quality-determining factors, which of course also have an effect on the prices of the organic Priorat wines. The grape varieties traditionally cultivated here are Mourvedre, Carignan and Grenache, which produce full-bodied red wines with Mediterranean characteristics. The wines are usually matured in large wooden barrels or in barriques, but always in such a way that the character of the grape varieties is in the foreground.

Priorat (Catalan, Spanish also Priorato) is a wine-growing region in the steep hills of the Serra de Montsant with soils of weathered slate rock that are ideal for viticulture. It is about 30 km west of the provincial capital of Tarragona.

The Priorat is Catalonia's oldest wine-growing region. In the Middle Ages, the region was one of the most important wine-growing regions in Spain. After that it was quiet for a long time until a clear renaissance began in 1989. Since 2001, the Priorat has been raised to the highest Spanish quality level DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada). Apart from the Priorat, it is only the Rioja wine-growing region that is assigned to this quality level.

Organic vineyard in the Priorat

The region in the center of the province of Tarragona was named after the Priory de la Cartoixa d'Escaladei (in English: Priory of the Carthusian Monastery of the Ladders of God, founded in 1163. The ruins of the Cartoixa d'Escaladei Monastery are partially preserved and are currently being restored The Priorat wine region is surrounded by the vineyards of the Denominacion Montsant (Holy Mountains). The very dark colored, deep cherry red and concentrated wines from the Priorat are very ageable. Its development can take up to 20 years to mature in the bottle. Due to their origin, the classic grape varieties and the very low harvest quantities of often no more than 10 hl/ha, organic wines from Priorat are also among the best wines in Spain.

The Priorat is Catalonia's oldest wine-growing region. In the Middle Ages, the region was one of the most important wine-growing regions in Spain. After that it was quiet for a long time until a clear renaissance began in 1989.
Since 2001, the Priorat has been raised to the highest Spanish quality level DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada). Apart from the Priorat, it is only the Rioja wine-growing region that is assigned to this quality level.

The very dark-colored, concentrated organic wines from Priorat are very ageing. Its development can take up to 20 years to mature in the bottle. Due to their origin, the soil of weathered slate rock, the classic grape varieties such as Mourvedre, Cariñena and Garnacha Tinta, which can be supplemented with some other Spanish and French varieties, they are among the most complex and best wines in Spain. Of course, low harvest quantities of often less than 10 hl/ha also contribute to their high quality and not so low prices.
The location of the Priorat, about 30 kilometers west of Tarragona with vineyards at 150m to 1,000m above sea level, offers very different climatic conditions that are influenced by Mediterranean, but also by continental influences, as well as by the respective altitude of a vineyard. The summers are usually very hot and dry, the winters relatively cold with sub-zero temperatures and snowfall.

The information summarized here comes from our winegrowers, from a trip to this region, and partly from WIKIPEDIA.